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At least 100 fishing spots dot the Montreal area, with most lakes open for ice fishing in the winter. Montreal provides a central location for anglers to choose fishing venues because of the confluence of the St. Lawrence and Ottawa rivers and nearby Lac St-Louis, Lac des Deux Montagnes, Rivière des Prairies and Rivière des Mille Îles. The waters surrounding Montreal are teeming with walleye, sturgeon, carp, rainbow trout, bass and muskie.

Lake of Two Mountains

Bois-de-l'Île-Bizard Nature Park surrounds Lac des Deux-Montagnes, or Lake of Two Mountains, and features a small beach and deep marshes with an abundance of ducks, turtles and beavers. Park management permits fishing from the beach or boats. The lake is 40 miles long and seven miles wide at its widest point. It's 30 minutes from Montreal's civic center. Anglers favor the lake during the winter for ice fishing for sturgeon.

Rivière-des-Prairies

Fly and bait fishing attract sunfish, largemouth and rock bass at Rivière-des-Prairies, which is a dam area about two miles from Laval, just west of Montreal. Anglers find an abundance of muskie during the warm weather period, from June through October, between the Moulin Rapids and St. Vincent de Paul Penitentiary. American, or Atlantic, shad spawns each year in May and June in the river.

Mont-Tremblant

Parc national du Mont-Tremblant is about an hour northwest of Montreal and serves as a central location for many of Quebec's anglers. It's home to rivers, streams and lakes for fly and bait fishing for trout, pike, bass and muskie. The park offers fishing clinics for fly casting in lakes and rivers and helps novice anglers practice actual fishing at the Diable River. Brook and rainbow trout are in the deeper reaches of Mont-Tremblant's backcountry where fly fishing prevails over bait fishing. The park provides guided tours into the backcountry.

Harbor and Pier Fishing

The Royal St. Lawrence Yacht Club has its own harbor in Dorval opposite Elliott Trudeau International Airport, south of central Montreal. l'Île Dorval is not far from the harbor on the St. Lawrence River. The club primarily focuses on yachting competition, but the break wall during the spring is a common spot to fish for walleye using soft-plastic minnows as lures. Walleye also migrate to the St. Lawrence at Lachine Pier between Dorval and Montreal. Anglers use soft-plastic grub lures for walleye and bass. A concrete wall in the Montreal Harbor calms the waters and attracts walleye during winter and early spring.

Island Fishing

Walleye congregate around the west shoreline of St. Helen's Island in the middle of the St. Lawrence between Montreal and Longueuil. Anglers can find largemouth and smallmouth bass at the north point of the island. To the north on the St. Lawrence is Boucherville Islands, teeming with largemouth and smallmouth bass, pike and walleye. Anglers usually stay close to the channels and bays around the island.

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About the Author

Rob Wagner is a journalist with over 35 years experience reporting and editing for newspapers and magazines. His experience ranges from legal affairs reporting to covering the Middle East. He served stints as a newspaper and magazine editor in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Wagner attended California State University, Los Angeles, and has a degree in journalism.

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